This invention relates generally to medical device systems and, more particularly, to medical device systems for applying electrical signals to a cranial nerve for the treatment of various medical conditions exhibiting unstable brain states as determined by analysis of data from a patient's cardiac cycle.
Many advancements have been made in treating medical conditions involving or mediated by the neurological systems and structures of the human body. In addition to drugs and surgical intervention, therapies using electrical signals for modulating electrical activity of the body have been found to be effective for many medical conditions. In particular, medical devices have been effectively used to deliver therapeutic electrical signals to various portions of a patient's body (e.g., the vagus nerve) for treating a variety of medical conditions. Electrical signal therapy may be applied to a target portion of the body by an implantable medical device (IMD) that is located inside the patient's body or, alternatively, may be applied by devices located external to the body. In addition, some proposed devices include a combination of implanted and external components.
The vagus nerve (cranial nerve X) is the longest nerve in the human body. It originates in the brainstem and extends, through the jugular foramen, down below the head, to the abdomen. Branches of the vagus nerve innervate various organs of the body, including the heart, the stomach, the lungs, the kidneys, the pancreas, and the liver. In view of the vagus nerve's many functions, a medical device such as an electrical signal generator has been coupled to a patient's vagus nerve to treat a number of medical conditions. In particular, electrical signal therapy for the vagus nerve, often referred to as vagus nerve stimulation (VNS), has been approved in the United States and elsewhere to treat epilepsy and depression. In particular, application of an electrical signal to the vagus nerve is thought to modulate some areas in the brain that are prone to seizure activity.
Implantable medical devices (IMDs) have been effectively used to deliver therapeutic stimulation to various portions of the human body (e.g., the vagus nerve) for treating a variety of diseases. As used herein, “stimulation” or “stimulation signal” refers to the application of an electrical, mechanical, magnetic, electro-magnetic, photonic, audio and/or chemical signal to a neural structure in the patient's body. The signal is an exogenous signal that is distinct from the endogenous electrical, mechanical, and chemical activity (e.g., afferent and/or efferent electrical action potentials) generated by the patient's body and environment. In other words, the stimulation signal (whether electrical, mechanical, magnetic, electro-magnetic, photonic, audio or chemical in nature) applied to the nerve in the present invention is a signal applied from an artificial source, e.g., a neurostimulator.
A “therapeutic signal” refers to a stimulation signal delivered to a patient's body with the intent of treating a medical condition by providing a modulating effect to neural tissue. The effect of a stimulation signal on neuronal activity is termed “modulation”; however, for simplicity, the terms “stimulating” and “modulating”, and variants thereof, are sometimes used interchangeably herein. In general, however, the delivery of an exogenous signal itself refers to “stimulation” of the neural structure, while the effects of that signal, if any, on the electrical activity of the neural structure are properly referred to as “modulation.” The modulating effect of the stimulation signal upon the neural tissue may be excitatory or inhibitory, and may potentiate acute and/or long-term changes in neuronal activity. For example, the “modulating” effect of the stimulation signal to the neural tissue may comprise one more of the following effects: (a) initiation of an action potential (afferent and/or efferent action potentials); (b) inhibition or blocking of the conduction of action potentials, whether endogenous or exogenously induced, including hyperpolarizing and/or collision blocking, (c) affecting changes in neurotransmitter/neuromodulator release or uptake, and (d) changes in neuro-plasticity or neurogenesis of brain tissue.
In some embodiments, electrical neurostimulation may be provided by implanting an electrical device underneath the skin of a patient and delivering an electrical signal to a nerve such as a cranial nerve. In one embodiment, the electrical neurostimulation involves sensing or detecting a body parameter, with the electrical signal being delivered in response to the sensed body parameter. This type of stimulation is generally referred to as “active,” “feedback,” or “triggered” stimulation. In another embodiment, the system may operate without sensing or detecting a body parameter once the patient has been diagnosed with a medical condition that may be treated by neurostimulation. In this case, the system may apply a series of electrical pulses to the nerve (e.g., a cranial nerve such as a vagus nerve) periodically, intermittently, or continuously throughout the day, or over another predetermined time interval. This type of stimulation is generally referred to as “passive,” “non-feedback,” or “prophylactic,” stimulation. In yet another type of stimulation, both passive stimulation and feedback stimulation may be combined, in which electrical signals are delivered passively according to a predetermined duty cycle, and also in response to a sensed body parameter indicating a need for therapy. The electrical signal may be applied by a pulse generator that is implanted within the patient's body. In another alternative embodiment, the signal may be generated by an external pulse generator outside the patient's body, coupled by an RF or wireless link to an implanted electrode or an external transcutaneous neurostimulator (TNS).
Generally, neurostimulation signals that perform neuromodulation are delivered by the IMD via one (i.e., unipolar) or more (i.e., bipolar) leads. The leads generally terminate at their distal ends in one or more electrodes, and the electrodes, in turn, are electrically coupled to tissue in the patient's body. For example, a number of electrodes may be attached to various points of a nerve or other tissue inside or outside a human body for delivery of a neurostimulation signal.
Conventional vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) usually involves non-feedback stimulation characterized by a number of parameters. Specifically, conventional vagus nerve stimulation usually involves a series of electrical pulses in bursts defined by an “on-time” and an “off-time.” During the on-time, electrical pulses of a defined electrical current (e.g., 0.5-2.0 milliamps) and pulse width (e.g., 0.25-1.0 milliseconds) are delivered at a defined frequency (e.g., 20-30 Hz) for the on-time duration, usually a specific number of seconds, e.g., 7-60 seconds. The pulse bursts are separated from one another by the off-time, (e.g., 14 seconds-5 minutes) in which no electrical signal is applied to the nerve. The on-time and off-time parameters together define a duty cycle, which is the ratio of the on-time to the sum of the on-time and off-time, and which describes the percentage of time that the electrical signal is applied to the nerve. It will be appreciated that calculation of duty cycle should also include any ramp-up and/or ramp-down time.
In conventional VNS, the on-time and off-time may be programmed to define an intermittent pattern in which a repeating series of electrical pulse bursts are generated and applied to the vagus nerve 127. Each sequence of pulses during an on-time may be referred to as a “pulse burst.” The burst is followed by the off-time period in which no signals are applied to the nerve. The off-time is provided to allow the nerve to recover from the stimulation of the pulse burst, and to conserve power. If the off-time is set at zero, the electrical signal in conventional VNS may provide continuous stimulation to the vagus nerve. Alternatively, the idle time may be as long as one day or more, in which case the pulse bursts are provided only once per day or at even longer intervals. Typically, however, the ratio of “off-time” to “on-time” may range from about 0.5 to about 10.
Although neurostimulation has proven effective in the treatment of a number of medical conditions, including epilepsy, it would be desirable to further enhance and optimize a therapeutic regimen comprising neurostimulation for this purpose. For example, it may be desirable to provide an active therapeutic regimen at times when an unstable brain state occurs. (An “unstable brain state” will be defined below). It may also be desirable to declare an unstable brain state as occurring, based on data routinely collected from extracranial sources. It may further be desirable to adjust the sensitivity of declaring when an unstable brain state occurs, to make a declaration of an unstable brain state more or less likely for different patients, for the same patient at different times of day, month, or year, or under other conditions.